Delfzijl - Heerenveen - Clean fuels supplier OG (OrangeGas) and Hyundai dealer Groenewold & Dijkhuizen are starting an exclusive pilot project with Hyundai ex-factory hydrogen trucks in the Netherlands, which will be delivered from Delfzijl. With this pilot project they want to give the transition to zero emission transport a boost by putting 30 H2 trucks on the road in the Netherlands in combination with a nationwide network of hydrogen filling stations.
Pilot project
For the pilot project, 30 trucks have been reserved for the Netherlands from the Asian manufacturer. Fruitful discussions between the manufacturer and Groenewold are now in the final phase in order to substantially increase this number if the project is successful. It concerns in the first instance the factory-produced Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell, a 19-tonne 4 x 2 rigid chassis suitable for various superstructures. The first demo truck will be delivered this year. The capacity of the hydrogen tank is 32.09 kg. The trucks can refuel at a 350 bar hydrogen filling station of OG.
In order to unburden the customer as much as possible, give them security and allow them to drive at the most attractive rate, a pay-for-use model (lease) will most likely be offered. When the trucks are in operation, it is important to collect and share data with the ultimate aim of getting as many zero-emission trucks on the road as possible.
A similar pilot project is already underway in Switzerland, where the first fifteen of the total intended fifteen hundred hydrogen trucks have already been delivered.
OG a frontrunner in hydrogen
With dozens of hydrogen projects, OG is working hard to realize its ambition of becoming the largest hydrogen supplier in Europe. This does not stop at just rolling out refueling stations, there are also major developments in the field of green production and now also making hydrogen trucks available and facilitating them.
"We are doers and don't wait for developments to happen, we make them happen! We have many customers who only want to drive ex-factory. Therefore, the arrival of these trucks is very important for the hydrogen economy". Says Marcel Borger CEO OG
Besides hydrogen, OG is the supplier of clean fuels: Bio-CNG, (fast) chargers, HVO100, LBG and ED95. With over 230 clean filling stations in three different countries, OG has a large network of customers who already drive clean and want to take further steps in this direction.
For the pilot project to succeed, reliable hydrogen filling stations are needed in the Netherlands. Groenewold & Dijkhuizen have great confidence in OG. Jan Groenewold explains: "We have had a Bio-CNG filling station in front of our showroom for some time now. Since OrangeGas operates this, we have more customers and there is never a breakdown. This is how it should be".
Groenewold & Dijkhuizen the hydrogen dealer
The Groenewold brothers are very proud of this project and are convinced that it will be a great success: The power of driving a hydrogen truck is a good range and load capacity, fast refuelling and of course it is clean! Trucks running on hydrogen hit a different target group than the transporters who can also drive battery-electric.
The Groenewold brothers have been Hyundai FCEV dealers for the Northern Netherlands since 2018 and have a lot of experience and knowledge in the hydrogen field in Delfzijl. They are very successful in selling Hyundai cars and have an excellent service and maintenance department. In the meantime they have also become quite adept at selling hydrogen cars. They have already put 50 Hyundai Nexo's/ ix35's on the road. In addition, Hyundai has been investing in hydrogen technology for more than 10 years and has extensive experience in this technology since the introduction of its first hydrogen car in 2012. This makes Hyundai a very reliable partner for ex-factory vehicles making vehicle and technology aligned.